“Scotland continues to be a better place to be a working woman than elsewhere in the UK and these latest figures confirm that we are performing better than the majority of the 28 EU countries.

“We have all seen the challenges that have had to be overcome through the recession and we have made creating a fairer, more equal workforce a key to our economic recovery.

“Our commitment to leading the way on 50:50 gender representation on boards; to giving young people real hope and prospects for employment and a career and championing a true living wage that are bound together under our goal of fair work for all employees.

“We have made real progress on breaking down the traditional barriers that we inherited, but calling out and condemning inequality in the workplace in all its forms needs to continue until the playing field is truly equal and your gender or background is irrelevant because you are judged on your abilities and potential.”